Alarm-clock.



J. P. METZ.

ALARM CLOCK.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 3, I919.

Patented Dec. 2, 1919.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN PAUL METZ, O15 JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO PILGRIM CLOCK-COMPANY, INC., 01 NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

ALARM-CLOCK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 2, 1919.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, JOHN PAUL Man, a Hungarian, now residing in the United States, residing at Jersey City, in the county ofHudson and State of New Jersay, have invented new and useful Improvements in Alarm-Clocks, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to clocks, more par ticularly to new and useful improvements in an alarm clock of the kind having time mechanism adapted at one winding to run for many days.

A main object of the invention is the provision of a clock of the character specified, embodying novel improvements, whereby the main-spring power of the alarm mech anism is utilized and controlled in such manner that by winding the alarm mecha nism when the time mechanism is wound, the alarm without further attention will be automatically operated each day as required for the whole number of days that it requires for the time mechanism to run down.

Another Ob ectis the provision in a clock embodying the foregoing features of such improvements inthe operative relation between the time mechanism and the alarm mechanism that friction is considerably reduced and less power is required to drive the time gear train, with the result that the time mechanism at each winding will run for an increased number of days.

With these and other objects in View, the invention resides in the details of construction and in the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described, defined in the claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming a material part of this specification; and it will be understood that changes and alterations in the precise embodimentof the invention as herein disclosed, may be made, to which changes and alterations the inventor is entitled, provided the same are effected within the scope of what is claimed.

In the accompanyingdrawings, as hereinafter more particularly explained and described, I have illustrated the preferred embodiment of my invention as reduced to practice, and in which 2- Figure 1 is a front elevational view, showing. my novel -iinprov'ements, parts being broken away. I

Fig. 2 is an underneath plan view of the parts shown in Fig. l.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged sectional view, taken in the direction indicated by line 33 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4: is a detail view of the shipping lever. 1

My improved mechanism, in its preferred embodiment, as reduced to practice and illustrated herein, may be employed in connection with the well-known framing, the well-known time gear train, and the wellknown hammer oscillating arrangements. The framework, consisting of the side plates 7 and 8, connected by pillars as 9, supports the time and alarm mechanisms in the usual way.

Included in the time train gears is a twenty-four hour wheel 10 provided with a hub 11, adapted to have both rotary and axial movement on the outerend of the ar her 12; but this hub has its outer end cam cut as at 21 to bear on the pin 22, which acts first to force the wheel axially toward the plate 7, andthen, as it is passed by the right-angled incut region 23, to permit the wheel to be given sudden axial movement away from said plate, under the tension of a spring 2%, secured to said plate at 25, and adapted yieldingly to bear on the inner edge 16 of the hub.

Piv'otally secured, midway its length, to the supporting block 26 by a pivot 27, is a lever 28, having on one'side of the pivot a tapering outer edge 28 and terminating in an enlarged flattened head 29, rounded on its opposite edges as shown for engagement one rounded edge with the circular web 30 of wheel 10, and the other rounded edge with the spring plate 2%. On the opposite side of the pivot, the outer edge of the lever 28 iS deeply cut away at 31 to provide a neck part 32,, p which terminates in an engaging head 33 having a slight enlargement 3 L that projects somewhat into the vacancy produced by the reduced edge 31.

Secured at 35 to the lever 28 is a rightangled spring 36, which tends no 'mally to swing away from said lever (Fig. 1). One arm 36, herein shown as the long arm, of this spring terminates short of the reach of the head 33 (Figs. 2 and while the short arm 37 extends inwardly so as to lie, when the lever 28 is tilted inwardly (as shown in dotted outline in Fig. 3) directly in the path of the pin 38, carried by the gear 39 on the alarm main-sprin 40.

Lever 28 is tilted inward y, with respect to gear 39, by the impingement of spring 24 on the head 29, at the time said spring thrusts the wheel 10 away as above described; and when the lever 28 is so tilted, the wire hammer arm 41 is free to oscillate into and out of the vacancy above the neck 32, and thereby to ring the alarm in the usual way. Now when, under the rotation of the gear 39, the pin 38 engages the arm 37, the angular spring is swept fiat agalnst the side of lever 28, projecting the outer angle or heel region 42 above the neck 32, so that the hammer arm 41 is caught thereon, with the result that the alarm is shut off and the wheel 39 locked against further rotation.

Presently the rotating wheel 10, as it is forced inwardly by the pin 21, engages the head 29 and moves lever 28 away from the gear 39, Which action causes the head 33 to engage under hammer arm 41, thereby releasing the angular spring, which forthwith assumes its normal position, ready again to be projected into the ath of the pin 28 upon the disengagement of the head 33 with the hammer arm 41. Each time, therefore, the head 33 is withdrawn from behind hammer arm 41, the alarm may sound until, under the rotation of the gear 39, pin 38 impinges short arm 37, and pushes it upon lever 28 in position for the heel region 42 to engage said hammer arm. From this, it'will be understood that the alarm will sound while the gear makes one revolution. Should the clock be designed to run eight days at one winding, it is essential that the alarm main sprin be capable of revolving the gear 39 for at east eight times'one time for each day. If it is a sixteen day clock, the alarm main spring should be competent to revolve gear 39 at least sixteen times. If the gear 39 be equipped with two spaced pins as 38, the number of times the alarm may be sounded at one winding will be doubled, while each ring is correspondingly reduced one-half as to time. Similarly, if three pins be employed, the ringing periods will be tripled in number and the length of each ring reduced two-thirds.

Adverting to the supporting block 26, it will be seen (Figs. 2 and 3) that the same is made with a reduced end 43, which projects through an opening 44 in plate 7, the said end 43 having provided transversely therein a suitable opening to receive a wedge-shaped key 45, whereby the blockis securely but removably attached to the plate 7.

In order that the alarm may be shut off manually whenever desired, I provide a shipping lever 46 with a curved lug 47, adapted to cooperate with the angular rojection 48 formed on lever 28. This s ipping lever is pivoted at 49, is provided with oppositely extending slots 50 and 51, into which project the pins 52 and 53, respectively, whereby operatively to uide and maintain it. An. integral thum -piece 54 serves as the means by which to manipulate it. When the shipping lever is thrust in, lug 47 acts on projection 48 so as to tilt lever 28 into position to engage the hammer arm 41 on the head 33 (Fig. 2). As will be understood from an inspection of Fig. 3, this operation does not interfere in any wa with the axial movements of the wheel 10.

The provision of pin 21, on which the cam edge 22 bears, as well as of the head 29, which works with a minimum of friction on wheel 10 and on spring 24, is most important in that the wheel 10 is retarded but slightly, with the result that the time clock train will run for a considerably longer period of time than in the well-known constructions.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a clock of the kind described, the combination with a hammer arm and alarm mechanism for oscillating the same, of a lever adapted to be tilted in one direction to prevent and in another direction to permit the oscillation of said hammer arm, a spring on said lever tending normally to swing away therefrom and adapted to be pressed against said lever in position to prevent the oscillation of said hammer arm when said lever is tilted into position permitting the oscillation thereof, and a pin wheel operated by said alarm mechanism and arranged to engage and press said spring against said lever. v

2. In a clock of the kind described, the combination with a hammer arm and alarm mechanism for oscillating the same, of a lever adapted to be tilted in one direction to prevent and in another direction to permit the oscillation of said hammer arm, a spring on said lever tending normally to swi away therefrom and adapted to be presse against said lever in position to prevent the oscillation of said hammer arm when said lever is tilted into position permitting the oscillation thereof, a pin wheel operated by said alarm mechanism and arranged to engage and press said spring against said lever, said pin wheel, when the spring is thus pressed against said lever, being held against rotation and serving as the instru- 125 mentality for preventing the alarm mechanism from acting.

3. In a clock of the kind described, the combination of a hammer arm and an alarm mechanism for oscillating the same, a lever 180 pivoted intermediate its length and adapted to be tilted first in one direction and then in another, said lever having an end formed to engage the hammer arm and to prevent the oscillation thereof upon being tilted in one direction and having also a lug formed near its opposite end, a spring on said lever tending normally to swing away therefrom and adapted when pressed against said lever to engage said hammer arm and prevent its oscillation when said lever is tilted in the second direction, a wheel rotated by the alarm mechanism and provided with a pin, said pin under the' rotation of the wheel being adapted to engage said spring and press the same against said lever whereupon said spring serves as a stop to prevent the further rotation of the wheel, and a shipping lever manually movable for engagement with said lever lug whereby to tilt said lever into its first position.

4. In a clock of the kind described, a time mechanism, an alarm mechanism including a pin wheel on the alarm main-spring and an oscillating hammer arm, a lever pivoted between its ends for tilting movement and having at one end a reduced portion to allow the oscillation of said hammer arm when the said lever is tilted in one direction, an angular spring attached to said lever and swingable to be engaged by the pin on said pin wheel and thereby to be swept into position against said lever to prevent the oscillation of said hammer arm, and means associated with the time mecha nism for automatically tilting said lever.

5. In a clock of the kind described, a time mechanism, an alarm mechanism including a pin wheel on the alarm main-spring and an oscillating hammer arm, a lever pivoted between its ends for tilting movement and having at one end a reduced portion to allow the oscillation of said hammer arm when the said lever is tilted in one direction, an angular spring attached to. said lever and swingable to be engaged by the pin on said pin wheel and thereby to be swept into position against said lever to prevent the oscillation of said hammer arm, means associated with the time mechanism for automatically tilting said lever, and manually operated means for tilting said lever into position for preventing the oscillation of said hammer arm without inter fering with the operation of said means.

6.. In a clock of the kind described, the combination with a time controlled mechanism and an oscillating hammer arm, of mechanism operated by the time controlled .mechanism for first permitting and then preventing the oscillation of said hammer arm and consisting of a lever pivoted between its ends and having one end adapted to be acted upon by said time controlled mechanism whereby to tilt the lever first in one direction and then in the other direction, said lever at the opposite end having a reduced part to permit the oscillation of the hammer arm, an angular spring attached to said lever and tending normally to move therefrom and adapted, when pressed against said lever, to project beyond said reduced part to prevent the oscillation of said hammer arm, and means comprising a spring actuated pin wheel for pressing said spring against said lever.

7 In a clock of the kind described, the combination with the alarm mechanism including an oscillating element, of a lever pivoted between its ends and means for tilting it on its pivot, said lever having a reduced part which allows the operation of said oscillating element when the lever is tilted into one position, a spring attached to said lever and tending normally to swing away therefrom and adapted when pressed against said lever to project into the space beyond the reduced part so as to hold the oscillating element against operation, said reduced part terminating in a head adapted to engage and hold the oscillating element from operating when the lever is tilted in the opposite direction and thereby to allow the release of said spring, and means associated with the alarm mechanism whereby to press the spring against said lever.

8. In a clock of the kind described, the combination with a time mechanism including an axially actuated and spring pressed wheel and the alarm mechanism including a hammer arm and a spring rotated gear carrying a pin, of a lever pivoted between its ends for tilting movement as upon an axis, said lever having one end projecting between said axially movable wheel and the tension spring therefor and being headed so as to be tilted in one direction by said wheel and in another direction by said ten sion spring, the opposite end of said lever being reduced to allow the oscillation of said hammer arm when the lever is tilted in one direction, an angular spring attached to said lever and tending normally to swing therefrom and in position when the hammer arm is permitted to oscillate to be engaged by the pin on said gear and thereby to be pressed against the lever in position to project beyond the reduced part so as to prevent the oscillation of said hammer arm, said reduced part terminating in a head adapted when the lever is tilted in the opposite direction to engage and lock said hammer arm from oscillating and thereby to release the angular spring.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this speciigtion.

HN PAUL METZ. 

